Dead Lines

10: We Were Just Getting To That

For now, I’d have to leave it for Uncle Clay to deal with as the vision began to try and claw its way out of me. There was definitely something different about this one.

Cecil must’ve felt the shift because as I began to stumble, his arm wrapped around my waist to steady me. To my father, it probably appeared as nothing more than an affectionate gesture when in fact it was the only thing keeping me upright and moving. All the tricks I’d learned in the past couple of weeks were failing me as I tried to ignore the pending vision.

“Cecil…”

“I’ll get you to the kitchen, don’t worry. Your dad won’t see. Try to hold it off a little bit longer.”

This would’ve been the best time for Andrzej to be here but for some stupid reason I didn’t ask him to hang around.

Lately, I was able to hold them off on my own. It was a skill I’d practiced over and over again during the beginning of my training with Kells. I’d also learned how to control them and manage the intensity so I wouldn’t have a blinding headache afterwards. But this one? It was shoving passed all my defenses and it felt like someone was carving open my mind with a can opener.

Whoever was keeping a tight rein on the future was now forcing me to see this vision. I had absolutely no choice in the matter and they were making that clear. They were trying to prove who was dominant in this scenario.

I maybe the Virgin Oracle but whoever they were…

They were more powerful and were willing to prove it at any cost, at any time.

We rounded into the kitchen, somehow being able to appear like there was nothing going on. But the second we were out of his sight, I released Cecil’s hand so I could press both of mine against my temples.

“Someone is forcing a vision,” I whispered with a painful tint to my voice. “Eros?”

“Maybe. Without giving in, can you tell what the vision is about?”

“It’s not the True Vision.” I grimaced as the pain went up a notch and blood began to drip out of my nose. “It’s something else.”

Cecil quickly nabbed a paper towel from the roll and pressed it to my nose. “What were you thinking about?”

“How my two lives were sort of meeting on the front porch…”

Cecil’s brow furrowed for a second. He was obviously thinking about something and I really hoped it pertained to the problem at hand. Now exactly wasn’t the time to be pondering the universe and the ultimate question.

“I have an idea.”

“Shoot.”

“You may not like it and to be honest, it’s not something I’ve tried before.”

He wiped gently at my nose before tossing the paper towel on the nearby counter. The expression on his face was serious, something he was doing with increasing regularity. I was starting to miss that smile again.

“We’re more powerful together.”

“Everyone says that.” I winced as the pain increased, the vision on the brink of breaking through. “Bu that’s not really relevant at the moment. Why are you bringing this up now?”

“Whatever’s happening…I think we can stop it. Together.”

“How?”

“Trust me…and don’t fight me.”

“I trust you. Always.”

He placed his hands over mine where they pressed against my temples. “Focus solely on me and only me.”